top of the Brocken. There is a choice of longer or shorter, but usually steeper, walks. The Wurmberg Trail (Wurmbergstieg) runs up to the summit of the Wurmberg. From the station, a trail runs directly to the tor known as the Feuersteinklippe. For winter sports lovers, Schierke has an extensive cross-country skiing trail network and a natural ice rink. In the first half of the 20th century Schierke was known for its skeleton run, where the German Championships were twice held – in 1914 and 1934. In 1950 the first East German national winter sports championships took place here, being portrayed on one of two special stamps by the East German Deutsche Post. In Schierke there is a summer rodelbahn, the Brockencoaster with a sun terrace. Notable people Johann Wolfgang von Goethe visited Schierke in 1784. The Walpurgis Night scene in Faust: The First Part of the Tragedy is set in the "District of Schierke and Elend". Schierker Feuerstein Schierker Feuerstein is a herbal liqueur and digestif (35% abv), patented in 1924 by the local chemist, Willy Drube. The red-brown beverage is named after the red granite of the Feuersteinklippe, a tor-like rock formation nearby. After World War II the production at first continued in Bad Lauterberg on the western side of the inner German border, but was also resumed in Schierke from 1972 on as Volkseigener Betrieb. After reunification the enterprises merged while the Feuerstein is still bottled at both locations. References External links Schierke tourism Former municipalities in Saxony-Anhalt Wernigerode